Infrastructure for the automation of the assembly of schema maintenance scripts

ABSTRACT

A method and apparatus to build a migration package. According to one embodiment of the invention, a plurality of programming elements are developed and stored in a configuration repository. The configuration repository also includes metadata used to describe each of the programming elements. Selected programming elements are placed in a set of one or more migration scripts to be stored in the migration package. The set of migration scripts may include a master configuration file and a driver file.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.09/968,170, entitled “Infrastructure for the Automation of the Assemblyof Schema Maintenance Scripts”, filed Sep. 28, 2001 now U.S. Pat. No.7,107,589, and naming Yoram Tal, Larisa YagoInitser, Ramzi Rabah,Patrick Wheeler, John J. Jakubik, and Tuck Leong Chan as inventors. Thisapplication is assigned to Siebel Systems, Inc., the assignee of thepresent invention, and is hereby incorporated by reference, in itsentirety and for all purposes.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to the field of computing. More specifically, theinvention relates to a method and apparatus to build an applicationsoftware migration.

2. Background of the Invention

An application software migration, that includes an application softwareinstallation or upgrade on an end-user server, is a tedious and timeconsuming process for the application software developer and applicationsoftware end-user alike. This process from initial application softwaredevelopment to application software implementation on the end-userserver involve many stages. Typically, this process starts with amultitude of software developers designing and writing applicationsoftware source code relating to different facets of the end-productapplication software. In general, the application software source codeincludes multiple programming elements, such as, programs, scripts,procedures, triggers, packages, among others for example. Theseprogramming elements are kept resident in an application software sourcecode library. An application software source code library helps managethe programming elements and prevent changes from being overwritten bymultiple application software developers making changes.

This may occur, for example, when an application software developerchecks out specific programming elements, in a way similar to how alibrary patron checks out a library book from a library. When anapplication software developer checks out a copy of a programmingelement, that application software developer is the only person who maymake updates to the programming element at any one time. Without thismechanism, the application software developer risk having a laterversion of the programming element overwritten by an early, now,incomplete version. For example, if two application software developersmake edits to a programming element at the same time, then theapplication software developer that saves the programming element lastwould be available and the previous modifications to the earlier savedprogramming element who be lost.

Another troublesome process of developing application software occurswhen the application software source code is to be released. At thistime, the application software source code is in various conditions ofreadiness. For example, the application software source code may containvarious programming elements that are not yet production ready for thecurrent release but will be further developed for future applicationsoftware versions. Also, depending on whether the software migration isfor an installation or an upgrade, the software source code may containvarying programming elements that the application software developer mayor may not want to be included in the current release. That is, theapplication software source code library may contain prior, current, andfuture release programming elements that the application softwaredeveloper may or may not want to include or have enabled in the versionof the software product being shipped to end-users.

In addition, various migration scripts are included with the shippedproduct to provide user-friendliness to the software migration process.These migration scripts execute the necessary programming elements toperform the software migration on the end-user specific platform. Thevarious end-user specific platforms depend on the end-user hardware,software operating system, database management system, and applicationsoftware version. Typically, the software migration scripts are manuallymodified with end-user platform specific information to enable thesoftware migration script to perform the software migration. Forexample, the migration script may be modified to include the location ofvarious software directories on the end-user server; to include variousoperating system specific parameters; and/or to include a userid andpassword to the database management system.

For example, assume an end-user application runs on a Microsoft NToperating system platform and interfaces with a Microsoft SQL Serverdatabase. In this computing environment, the end-user would have tomodify a software migration script to tailor the software upgrade withMicrosoft NT and SQL Server specific parameters. In addition, if themigration script is generic and the migration script is not native to aMicrosoft operating system, (e.g., the migration script is a Unix Kornscript), the migration script would need to be further modified toexecute within Microsoft operating system, or a software emulationprogram would have to be included with the Unix migration script, whichwould allow the Unix migration script to execute in the Microsoft NToperating system environment.

Even here, problems occur when the end-user manually edits the migrationscripts with the environment specific information before execution.Specifically, problems occur when end-users edit the migration scriptsincorrectly or accidentally delete portions of the scripts. Therefore,editing the migration scripts may cause errors and delays to theimplementation of the software migration.

Another troublesome circumstance occurs when errors arise during thesoftware migration process. When the migration process encounters afatal error, the migration process requires the entire installationprocess to be restarted. This is especially, troublesome if themigration process is lengthy. In some circumstances, the length of timeto restart the migration process is further delayed because a databaseadministrator must “reset” the database to a condition prior to thefailed software migration process (e.g., perform a database load anddump). Depending on where the software migration failed, “resetting” thedatabase to its previous condition may take hours.

In other situations, the entire migration process may complete, and itis not until the end-user views the log messages that it determines afatal error has occurred. In this situation, cascading errorsaccumulating in the logs makes trouble-shooting difficult. Errors in themigration process may also produce too many error logs. As a result,end-users have to sift through these files and compare any errors inthem to a list of ‘acceptable errors’ that are provided.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention may best be understood by referring to the followingdescription and accompanying drawings that are used to illustrateembodiments of the invention. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 illustrates an overview of the software migration processaccording to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 illustrates a logical data model of the configuration repositoryaccording to an embodiment.

FIG. 3 illustrates the manner in which a migration assembler generatesmigration scripts according to an embodiment.

FIG. 4 illustrates the process of a typical software migration appliedto a end-user server according to an embodiment.

FIG. 5 illustrates a medium or media useful for an embodiment of aprocess to perform an application software migration.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth toprovide a thorough understanding of the invention. However, it isunderstood that the invention may be practiced without these specificdetails. In other instances, well-known circuits, structures andtechniques have not been shown in detail in order not to obscure theinvention.

A method and apparatus to perform an application software migration isdescribed. Specifically, a method and apparatus to perform anapplication software migration using a migration assembler during thesoftware build stage and a migration orchestrator during the softwaremigration stage is described. In general, the migration assembler isresponsible for migration script creation and the migration orchestratorcollects end-user platform specific information and executes themigration scripts as will be further described below.

FIG. 1 illustrates an overview of the software migration processaccording to an embodiment of the invention. Here, the figure ispartitioned into 3 stages: a configuration stage 102, a build stage 152,and a migration stage 172. In the configuration stage 102, programmingelements of the application software to be migrated to an end-userserver are stored in a configuration repository 140. As illustrated inFIG. 1, an end-user 110 receives a copy of the programming elements tobe modified from the application software source library 105 (hereinreferred to as Source Safe). For example, a programming elementretrieved from the source safe 105 may be a database procedure, writtenin a standard query language (SQL), that inserts or removes specificdatabase tables, columns, indexes, among other examples.

In one embodiment, programming elements that is to be enhanced ischecked out of the source safe 105 and moved into the configurationrepository 140. The configuration repository 140 may include programmingelements from prior, current, and future versions of the applicationsoftware to be migrated. The configuration repository 140 includes logicto allow multiple application software developers to check programmingelements into and out of the configuration repository 140. In addition,in one embodiment, the configuration repository 140 includes metadatathat describes the programming elements as will be further explainedbelow.

After the migration repository is populated, a migration validator 145validates the logical organization of the data stored in theconfiguration repository 140. In one embodiment the configurationrepository has a logical data model with the programming elementslogically organized into processes, phases, steps, and implementations,as will be further described below. Here, the migration validator 145may be used to ensure that the data stored in the logical data model ofthe configuration repository 140 is accurate. For example, the migrationvalidator 145 will ensure each migration process is associated with itsmultiple phases, that is associated with its multiple migration steps,what is associated with its multiple migration implementations. In oneembodiment, the output of the migration validator 145 may be presentedto an application software developer as either log files 147 or reports148. It should be understood that although the invention has beendescribed in relation to processes, phases, steps, and implementationsother alternative hierarchies may be defined or none at all withoutlimiting the scope of the invention.

In the build stage 152, the application software developer generates themigration scripts to be shipped to the end-user. Here, a migrationassembler 155 selects the programming elements, stored in theconfiguration repository 140, which are to be included in the nextversion of the application software release. In this way, only theselected programming elements that are production ready are collected,thereby, eliminating the loading of non-production ready programmingelements that would otherwise slow the migration process when applied tothe end-user server. In one embodiment, all programming elements are notstored in the configuration repository 140, however, these programmingelements are also packaged within the migration package. Repimexp 162and Dataimp 164 are examples of utilities written in non-SQL code (e.g.,binary code) that are not stored in the configuration repository 140 butare selected to be included with the migration package. Having receivedthe necessary programming elements, the migration assembler builds amigration script for each platform to be stored in the migration packageand migrated as will be further described below.

In the migration stage 172, a migration orchestrator 175 is used tocollect end-user platform specific information and execute the migrationscripts against an end-user server 180. As will be further describedbelow, if a fatal error occurs during the execution of the softwaremigration, the migration orchestrator 175 may restart the execution ofthe software migration from the point in which the fatal error occurred,thereby skipping the portion(s) of the migration script that wassuccessfully executed. In this way, the software migration isefficiently performed.

Configuration Repository

FIG. 2 illustrates a logical data model of the configuration repositoryaccording to an embodiment of the invention. Here, the configurationrepository 200 stores the application software programming elements andassociated metadata. In FIG. 2, the application software programmingelements and associated metadata is organized into a hierarchy ofentities represented by migration processes, phases, steps, andimplementations as follows.

The Schema Maint Proc 210 entity includes metadata that describes themigration process type of the associated programming elements.Typically, a software migration may be described as install, upgrade,dev2prod, among other examples. For example, if the process type is an‘install’ type then the associated programming element(s) and metadatais for an application software installation. If the process type is‘dev2prod’ type then the associated programming element(s) and metadatais for a development version of the application software on adevelopment server is migrated to a production server.

In one embodiment, the types of migration processes defined in theSchema Maint Proc 210 entity may include two subtypes: Version IndepSchema Maint Proc 213 and Version Specific Schema Maint Proc 217.Version Indep Schema Maint Proc 213 refers to generic processes typeslike ‘Install’. Version Specific Schema Maint Proc 217 refers to thespecific set of supported install and upgrade paths. In one embodiment,a variety of upgrade paths may be defined within the metadata. Forexample, the Version Specific Schema Maint Proc 217 may indicate theassociated application source code needed for an application upgradefrom version ‘6.01 to 7.0’.

The DB Schema Version 220 entity includes metadata that describes whichapplication software version the programming elements are associatedwith. For example, a specific application software version may beversion 5.0, version 6.0, or version 7.0. In one embodiment, the typesof application versions defined in the DB Schema Version 220 entityinclude two subtypes: Base App Ver 223 and Specialized Ver 227. Base AppVers 223 (and some of Specialized Ver 224) refers to released versionsof the application software. The Specialized Ver 227 is used torepresent vertical upgrades. Since vertical product upgrades need tosupport a base horizontal upgrade to the vertical one.

The Schema Maintenance Phase 240 entity includes metadata that describesa logical grouping of migration steps within migration phases. Forexample, a migration phase describes a group of one or more migrationsteps, such as, ‘Migration Steps Prior to Creating Tables’ or ‘MigrationSteps Prior to Creating Indexes’, among other examples. In oneembodiment, metadata stored in the Schema Maintenance Phase 240 entitymay be associated to one or more of the metadata records stored in theSchema Maintenance Procs 210 entity.

In one embodiment, the Schema Maintenance Phase 240 entity includes asequence number, argument string, and condition expression. The sequencenumber in the Schema Maintenance Phase 240 entity defines the sequencein which a migration phase will be executed in a software migrationscript. The argument string defines the relationships between themigration phase and its associated group of migration steps. Thecondition expression is a conditional expression that the migrationassembler uses during the build phase as will be further describedbelow.

The Schema Maint Step 230 entity includes metadata that describes themigration steps to be performed for each migration phase. Each migrationphase requires multiple steps to be performed in a specific sequenceorder. For example, if the migration process is an ‘install’ type andthe migration phase is ‘Migration Steps to Build a Customer Table’ thenthe migration steps of may include (1) create customer table step; (2)create table columns step; (3) and create table index step; in thisorder sequence.

In one embodiment the migration step types defined in the Schema MaintStep 230 entity include two subtypes: Data Upgrade Step 233 and GenericStep 237. A Data Upgrade Step 233 is a logical unit of work that coversone schema change. A Data Upgrade Step 233 can have multipleimplementations (dependent on the Database Platform 215), each of whichmay be implemented in one or more SQL statements. Generic Step 237refers to Schema Maintenance Steps that are not version specific. Thesesteps are generic and are included in the assembler regardless ofversion.

In one embodiment, the Data Upgrade Step 233 includes a sequence number,never expire flag, a column name reference, a index name reference and atable name reference. The sequence number defines the sequence in whichthe migration steps are implemented. The never expire flag for the DataUpgrade Step 233 will expire for migration from application softwareversions >=application software version in which the migration step wasintroduced, unless this flag is set to ‘Y’. In one embodiment, the neverexpire flag is implemented because there are certain migration stepsthat always need to be run regardless of the application softwareversion that is migrated from or to.

The Schema Maint Step Implementation 250 entity stores the migrationimplementation specific programming elements for a specific applicationsoftware migration. Each migration step includes many lines ofapplication source code to be implemented. In one embodiment, a sequencenumber of each SQL statement defines the sequence in which the differentSQL statements described in Data Upgrade Step 233 are implemented.

In one embodiment, the Schema Maint Step Implementation 250 entity isseparated into two subtypes: SQL code 253 and Utility Call 257. The SQLcode 253 includes the implementation specific SQL code for theapplication software migration. The Utility Call 257 includes non-SQLcalls to external applications. In one embodiment, the Utility Call 257call includes ‘skeleton’ data that includes the name of a server fileexecutable call and its command-line arguments. Here, the actual serverfile executable call is not stored in the configuration repository 200data model, whereas, the SQL code is stored within SQL code 253.

The Schema Maint Step DB Implementation 260 entity includes non-uniformimplementation source code. For example, if the SQL for a Oracledatabase and MS SQL Server database differ for a given implementation,then the Schema Maint Step DB Implementation 260 entity will store bothimplementations, whereas, if the SQL for a Oracle database and MS SQLServer database are the same for a given implementation, then the SchemaMaint Step Implementation 250 will store the SQL. In one embodiment, theSchema Maint Step DB Implementation 260 entity includes two subtypes:SQL code 263 and Utility Call 267. The SQL code 263 includes theimplementation specific SQL code for the application software migration.The Utility Call 267 includes the ‘skeleton’ data as described above.Again, the non-SQL executable is stored external to the configurationrepository 200 data model.

The Repository 290 entity includes metadata describing the type ofdatabase elements (e.g., tables, columns, indexes, etc) needed for thespecific application software version indicated within DB Schema Version220. Thereby, the Schema Element 270 entity includes metadata of thesedatabase elements. The database elements include Table 272, Column 274,Index 276, and Index Column 278 metadata.

Schema Maintenance Proc Variable 205 entity includes metadata describingend-user platform specific information. For example, for an Oracledatabase platform, the Schema Maintenance Proc Variable 205 entitystores metadata indicating that end-user platform specific information,such as, TABLSESPACE, INDEXSPACE, Username and password, among otherexamples, will be required. For a DB2 database platform, the SchemaMaintenance Proc Variable 205 entity stores metadata indicating thatend-user platform specific information, such as, 4K tablespace, 16 ktablespace, 32 k tablespace, among other examples, will be required.

Migration Assembler

In the build stage 152, a migration assembler selects the necessaryprogramming elements from the configuration repository, then generatesand logically organizes migration scripts and files to be delivered toan end-user to perform a specific application software migration. FIG. 3illustrates the manner in which a migration assembler generatesmigration scripts according to an embodiment of the invention. At stage1, an application software developer uses a user interface 305 providedby the migration assembler 310 to indicate the programming elements tobe extracted from the configuration repository 320. Here, theapplication software developer may use the user interface 305 to requestthe extraction of a specific migration process type, database version,migration phase, migration steps, and migration implementations from theconfiguration repository 320.

At stage 2, the migration assembler 310 interfaces with theconfiguration repository 320 and extracts the programming elements fromthe configuration repository 320 as requested by the applicationsoftware developer though the user interface 305. In one embodiment, themigration assembler 310 extracts the programming elements by making aSQL call to the configuration repository 320. Here, the SQL resultsrepresents the programming elements to be migrated. However, it shouldbe understood that alternative system calls may be made to extract theprogramming elements, such as, QUEL, QBE, RPC, etc.

At stage 3, the migration assembler 310 generates the migration scriptsto perform a specific application software migration. Here, themigration scripts includes a driver file 340 and a master configurationfile 345. The driver file 340 includes the migration steps thatrepresent the conditional and logic flow of a specific softwaremigration. In one embodiment, a separate driver file 340 is generatedfor each migration process and data base platform type combination. Forexample, the driver file for an ‘install’ migration process containsdifferent migration steps than a driver file for an ‘upgrade’ migrationprocess. In addition, a single driver file 340 may exist for eachdatabase platform (e.g. Oracle, MS SQL Server, IBM DB2, etc).

Given the migration process and the database platform type, themigration assembler 310 generates and logically organizes the driverfile 340 with a series of the migration steps obtained from theconfiguration repository 320. In one embodiment, the migration stepsobtained from the configuration repository 320 are ordered by themigration phase, steps, and implementation, as specified in thelogically data model. As described above, metadata, such as, themigration phase and step sequence numbers allows the migration assemblerto logically order the migration steps within the driver file.

In one embodiment, the driver file 340 includes a set of one or more theSQL migration steps and server command line migration steps as describedabove. A SQL migration step is a SQL programming element (SQL, storedprocedures, triggers, etc.) to be executed by the migration assembler.Here, the SQL migration step includes a SQL file name to be executed anda set of database parameters (e.g., table owner name, IgnoreAllDDLErrorsflag, IgnoreAllDMLErrors flag, among other examples.) used in executingthe given SQL file.

The server command line migration step is executed by the end-userserver command line file executable. Here, the server command linemigration step includes a reference to a server program (e.g., binaryprogram) to be executed, any command line arguments to be associatedwith the server program, and a set of database arguments (e.g., checkreturn code flag, return code compliance flag, 16 Bit App flag, amongother examples).

The migration assembler 310 also generates a master configuration file345. In one embodiment, the master configuration file 345 includes areference of end-user platform specific information needed for eachdriver file 340 to be executed on a specific end-user applicationplatform. A different master configuration file 345 is generated, by themigration assembler 310, for each driver file 340 created. Therefore, aone-to-one correlation between a master configuration and a driver fileexist.

In one embodiment, the master configuration file 345 will only includereferences of necessary end-user platform specific information. Forexample, the master configuration file 345 may include end-user platformspecific information such as, database userid, database password,database table password, ODBC Data Source, Table Owner, application Rootdirectory, Language, Index Space, Table Space, 8K Table Space flag, 16KTable Space flag, 32K Table Space flag, Database platform name, DatabaseServer name, Database Owner name, application Version, CustomerRepository Name, Customer Repository File, Database server Rootdirectory, Ancestor Repository Name, Ancestor Repository File, RollbackSegment, Development flag (indicates whether the application isdevelopment or production), Keep All UpgWiz Files flag, Database SchemaProcess flag, Run Unattended flag, Log Directory, Log Events flag, amongother examples.

In one embodiment, a specific master configuration file may include oneor more of these end-user platform specific information examplesdepending on the migration process type and database version of theend-user platform. In this way, during the migration stage 172, themaster configuration file 345 is referenced to determine which end-userplatform specific information is necessary and should be collected fromthe end-user before performing the application software migration aswill be further described below.

At stage 4, the migration assembler 310 generates necessary migrationfiles with tags to the location to where the migration files should bestored during the Migration Stage 172. The migration files may includethe necessary programming elements, SQL files containing code to buildthe necessary programming elements, and data files, among otherexamples. These migration files are stored in the migration package tobe delivered to end-user. For example, SQL extracted from theconfiguration repository may be stored in a named SQL file and taggedwith an indicator directing the named SQL file to be stored in aspecific directory during the migration stage. In one embodiment, theconfiguration repository 320 also includes binary program files that arecompiled, tagged, and placed in the migration package.

In one embodiment, the migration scripts and files are stored in asource safe. Here, the source safe would provide a repository for boththe programming elements that are developed in the configurationrepository 320 and those programming elements that are not developed inthe configuration repository 320. For example, the configurationrepository 320 may include SQL code and scripts which is transferred inthe source safe by the Migration Assembler 310. The programming elementsnot included in the configuration repository 320 may include binaryprogram code, for example, that is manually inserted in the source safe.In one embodiment, a ASCII makefile may be manually modified to includea list of all the required files in the source safe to be extracted intothe migration package. Here, the makefile will ensure that the migrationpackage has all the necessary files before delivering the migrationpackage to the end-user.

In one embodiment, the migration package is placed in a file deliverymechanism. Examples of file delivery mechanism includes a CD-ROM, floppydisk, ftp server, among other examples. Here, the migration package isstored in a file delivery mechanism for delivery to an end-user.

Migration Orchestrator

FIG. 4 illustrates the process of a typical software migration appliedto a end-user server according to an embodiment of the invention. Here,a migration orchestrator is used to execute migration scripts, from amigration package, to the end-user server. In one embodiment, amigration orchestrator collects end-user platform specific informationand executes migration scripts to perform the software migration. InFIG. 4, the migration orchestrator 405 produces a user interface 410 toprompt the end-user for end-user information describing the migrationprocess type to be performed (e.g., install, upgrade, etc) and thedatabase platform. For example, the end-user may use the user interface410 to choose to perform an install type migration process on a IBM DB2database platform.

With this information the migration orchestrator 405 determines whichmaster configuration file 420 and associative driver file 430 is to beused. As described above, in one embodiment, a master configuration file420 and associative migration driver file 430 is created for eachmigration process type and database platform. Therefore, after theend-user provides the migration orchestrator 405 the migration processtype and database platform, the migration orchestrator 405 determineswhat additional end-user specific information (e.g., user id, password,etc.) is required by the associated driver file 430 from the appropriatemaster configuration file 420. That is, the migration orchestrator 405prompts the end-user from the user interface 410 for the necessaryend-user platform specific information defined in the specific masterconfiguration file 420 for the migration process type and databaseplatform given.

In this way, the end-user need not risk potential migration errors dueto modifying the migration scripts as described in the background. Inone embodiment, the migration orchestrator 405 will only execute thoseportions needed to perform the software migration. This is because,during the build stage, the migration assembler organized the masterconfiguration and driver files to only perform the migration stepsneeded to perform a software migration for a specific migration processtype and database platform. In this way, in one embodiment, themigration orchestrator 405 is not responsible for the migration logic.The migration orchestrator 405 merely selects the master configurationand driver files and executes the software migration as described below.

In one embodiment, the migration orchestrator extracts and stores in aspecific directory the appropriate migration files in a server filedirectory. However, in alternative embodiments, the extraction andstoring of migration server files in a directory may be performed beforethe end-user platform specific information is collected.

Upon receiving the end-user specific information, the migrationorchestrator 405 provides it to the associative migration driver file430 of the associative master configuration file. The migrationorchestrator 405 then executes the migration steps defined in themigration driver file 430 against the end-user server. In oneembodiment, the migration orchestrator 405 includes a parser/executer442 to parse and execute the SQL and server command line migration stepsdefined in the driver file 430. The migration orchestrator 405 alsoincludes a shell layer 444 that handles execution of the programs andcalls out threads asynchronously. Therefore, the migration orchestrator405 may execute the migration steps in background or in parallel, tooptimize execution speed. Also, in one embodiment, both theparser/executer 442 and shell layer 444 operate accordingly regardlessof the server operating system in use (e.g., Window NT, Unix, amongother examples).

The migration orchestrator 405 also generates software migration logmessages. Log messages are used to provide status information of thesoftware migration to the end-user. In one embodiment, the softwaremigration status information is stored in the driver log file 460 andstate log file 450 and/or provided to the user interface 410. The driverlog file 460 includes detailed status information of each migration stepperformed during the software migration. The state log file 450 includesa summary status of each migration step performed during the softwaremigration. In one embodiment, the summary status indicates whether themigration step executed was successful or failed. For example, uponexecution of a SQL migration step or server command line step within thedriver file 430, the migration orchestrator 405 will write out to thestate log file 450 a message describing whether the step wassuccessfully executed (e.g., “Step 1: successful”; “Step: 3 failed”;“Step 4: incomplete”).

In one embodiment, the migration orchestrator 405 allows the end-user todetermine the types of messages to log. By way of example, the end-usermay toggle whether to capture “acceptable errors” to the log file anduser interface 410. Acceptable errors are non-fatal errors which do notinterrupt execution. In this way, the end-user may eliminate themultitude of messages to the logs to provide better readability.

In one embodiment, migration orchestrator 405 will use the state logfile 450 to restart a failed software migration from the point themigration failed. By way of example, assume the software migration washalted because of a fatal error. The fatal error may have occurredbecause of a failed network connection, the database logs were full,among other examples. When the cause of the fatal error has beenresolved (e.g., network connection is resumed, database log files areextended, among other examples), the end-user uses the migrationorchestrator 405 to execute the migration scripts a second time. In oneembodiment, the migration orchestrator 405 searches for the state logfile 450. If the state log file 450 exists, the migration orchestrator405 will parse the state log file 450, searching for the migration stepthat was performed at the time of the fatal error. In one embodiment,the migration step that was performed at the time of the fatal error isthe point in which the migration is to restart. Having identified themigration step that was unsuccessful, the migration orchestrator 405then scans the selected migration driver file 430 for the location ofthis migration step and restarts the software migration from this point.In one embodiment, if multiple migration steps are executed in parallel,then migration orchestrator 405 will scan the state log file 450 andstore the successful states in a memory. The migration orchestrator 405will then parse the driver file 403 and only execute those migrationsteps that were not successful. In this way, the duration of a restartedsoftware migration is shorten because the software migration need not berestarted from the beginning.

It should be appreciated that the embodiments described to perform asoftware migration, allows for improved organization of programmingelements during the development of the future versions of applicationsoftware. As described the migration assembler allow an applicationsoftware developer to select only those programming elements which arerequired for a specific software migration. As described, the migrationorchestrator limits the possibly of end-user error by minimizingproblems that may occur when end-user provide end-user specific platforminformation to the migration scripts. In addition, the restart time ofthe migration script is shorten by using the state log identify the lastsuccessful migration step and continuing execution for that point. Inthese ways, among others, the software migration is more efficient.

It should be understood that although the invention has been describedas having a migration orchestrator collect end-user platform specificinformation and execute the migration scripts to the end-server server,in alternative embodiments, one or more applications may perform theseand other tasks without limiting the scope of the invention.

The techniques shown in the figures can be implemented using code anddata stored and executed on computers. Such computers store andcommunicate (internally and with other computers over a network) codeand data using machine-readable media, such as magnetic disks; opticaldisks; random access memory; read only memory; flash memory devices;electrical, optical, acoustical or other form of propagated signals(e.g., carrier waves, infrared signals, digital signals, etc.); etc. Ofcourse, one or more parts of the invention may be implemented using anycombination of software, firmware, and/or hardware.

FIG. 5 illustrates a medium or media useful for an embodiment of aprocess to perform an application software migration. Each of the blocksof medium 500 may be implemented separately or in combination with otherblocks and not all blocks need be implemented. Block 510 includesmigration configuration logic which may be used to generate aconfiguration repository comprising logically organized migrationprogramming elements. Block 520 includes migration assembler logic whichmay be used to select programming elements to be inserted into migrationscripts for a migration package. Block 530 includes migrationorchestrator logic that applies the migration package to a specificend-user server.

Some portions of the detailed description are presented in terms ofalgorithms and symbolic representations of operations on data bitswithin a computer memory. These algorithmic descriptions andrepresentations are the means used by those skilled in the art to mosteffectively convey the substance of their work to others skilled in theart. An algorithm as described here is generally conceived to be a selfconsistent sequence of acts or operations leading to a desired result.The acts are those requiring physical manipulations of physicalquantities. Usually, though not necessarily, these quantities take theform of electrical or magnetic signals capable of being stored,transferred, combined, compared and otherwise manipulated. It has provenconvenient at times principally for reasons of common usage to refer tothese signals as bits, values, elements, symbols, characters, terms,numbers, data or the like.

It should be borne in mind, however, that all of these in similar termsare to be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and aremerely convenient labels applied to these quantities. Unlessspecifically stated otherwise as apparent from the following discussionit is appreciated that throughout the description discussions utilizingterms such as “processing” or “computing” or “calculating” or“determining” or “displaying” or the like refer to the action andprocesses of a computer system or similar electronic computing devicethat manipulates and transforms data represented as physical(electronic) quantities within the computer systems registers andmemories into other data similarly represented as physical quantitieswithin the computer system memories or registers or other suchinformation storage transmission or display devices. The presentinvention can be implemented by an apparatus for performing theoperations herein. This apparatus may be specially constructed for therequired purposes or it may comprise a machine such as a general purposecomputer selectively activated or reconfigured by a computer program(such as a collection of instructions for execution by a machine orprocessor for example) stored in the computer. Such a computer programmay be stored in a computer readable storage medium such as but notlimited to any type of disk including floppy disks, optical disks, CDROMs and magnetic optical disks, read only memories, random accessmemories, EPROMS, EEPROMS, magnetic or optical cards or any type ofmedia suitable for storing electronic constructions and each coupled toa computer system bus. Each of these media may be coupled to a computersystem bus through use of an appropriate device for reading and orwriting the media in question. Specialty apparatus may include acollection of readily available pieces or an application specificintegrated circuit including a series of logic blocks for example. Theblocks of FIG. 1, 3, or 4 may be suitable for implementation as logicblocks, as may other configurations of the method, system and apparatusdescribed herein.

The algorithms and displays presented herein are not inherently relatedto any particular computer or other apparatus. Various general purposesystems may be used with programs in accordance with the teachingsherein or it may prove convenient to construct more specializedapparatus to perform the required method. For example, any of themethods according to the present invention can be implemented in hardwired circuitry by programming a general purpose processor or by anycombination of hardware and software. One of skill in the art willimmediately appreciate that the invention can be practiced with computersystem configuration. Configurations other than those described belowincluding hand held devices, multi processor systems, microprocessorbased or programmable consumer electronics, network PCs, mini computers,main frame computers and the like. The invention may also be practicedin distributed computing environments or tasks or performed by remoteprocessing devices that are linked through a communications network. Therequired structure for a variety of these systems will appear from thedescription below.

The methods of the invention may be implemented using computer software.If written in a programming language conforming to a recognized standardsequences of instructions designed to implement the methods can becompiled for execution on a variety of hardware platforms or machinesand for interface to a variety of operating systems. In addition thepresent invention is not described with reference to any particularprogramming language. It will be appreciated that a variety ofprogramming languages may be used to implement the teachings ofinvention as described herein. Furthermore, it is common in the art tospeak of software in one form or another (for example program procedureapplication etc. . . . ) as taken in action or causing a result. Suchexpressions are merely a shorthand way of saying that execution of thesoftware by a computer causes the processor of the computer to performan action or produce a result.

While the invention has been described in terms of several embodiments,those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention is notlimited to the embodiments described. The method and apparatus of theinvention can be practiced with modification and alteration within thespirit and scope of the appended claims. The description is thus to beregarded as illustrative instead of limiting on the invention.

1. A method comprising: selecting one or more selected program elementsfrom a plurality of program elements, wherein the selecting usesmetadata, the metadata describes the plurality of programming elements,the metadata and at least some of the plurality of programming elementsare stored in a configuration repository, and the metadata identifies amigration process type, a database version of an end-user platform, andmigration steps needed to perform a software migration for the migrationprocess type and the database version, and generating one or moremigration scripts, wherein the one or more migration scripts comprisesthe selected program element(s).
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein themetadata further identifies the migration process type as one of versionspecific, or not version specific.
 3. The method of claim 1 wherein themetadata further identifies a version of application software that is atarget of the software migration.
 4. The method of claim 3 wherein theversion of the application software comprises: one of a base applicationversion and a specialized version, wherein the base application versionrefers to a released version of the application software, and thespecialized version refers to a vertical upgrade of the applicationsoftware.
 5. The method of claim 1 further comprising: organizing theplurality of program elements in a logical order to perform the softwaremigration.
 6. The method of claim 5 wherein the metadata comprises:information describing the logical order to perform the softwaremigration.
 7. The method of claim 6 wherein said organizing theplurality of program elements comprises: grouping one or more phaseassociated migration steps in a migration phase; and describing themigration phase in the metadata.
 8. The method of claim 7 wherein themetadata comprises: a sequence number defining a sequence in which themigration phase is executed in an associated migration script.
 9. Themethod of claim 7 wherein the metadata comprises: an argument stringdefining a relationship between the migration phase and the one or morephase associated migration steps.
 10. The method of claim 7 wherein themetadata comprises: identification of the one or more phase associatedmigration steps.
 11. The method of claim 1 further comprising:collecting target-specific information from the user, wherein thecollecting is performed after the generating; and executing the one ormore migration scripts, wherein the executing uses the target-specificinformation.
 12. The method of claim 1 wherein the plurality of programelements are configured to perform a software migration.
 13. Anapparatus comprising: means for selecting selected program elements froma plurality of program elements, wherein the means for selectingcomprises means for using metadata, the metadata describes the pluralityof programming elements, the metadata and at least some of the pluralityof programming elements are stored in a configuration repository, andthe metadata identifies a migration process type, a database version ofan end-user platform, and migration steps needed to perform a softwaremigration for the migration process type and the database version; andmeans for generating one or more migration scripts, wherein the one ormore migration scripts comprises the selected program element(s). 14.The apparatus of claim 13 further comprising: means for organizing theplurality of program elements in a logical order to perform the softwaremigration, wherein the metadata comprises information describing thelogical order to perform the software migration.
 15. The method of claim14 wherein the means for organizing the plurality of program elementscomprises: means for grouping one or more phase associated migrationsteps in a migration phase; and means for describing the migration phasein the metadata.
 16. A non-transitory computer-readable mediumcomprising: a first set of instructions, executable by a processor,configured to select selected program elements from a plurality ofprogram elements, wherein the first set of instructions are furtherconfigured to perform said selecting using metadata, the metadatadescribes the plurality of programming elements, the metadata and atleast some of the plurality of programming elements are stored in aconfiguration repository, and the metadata identifies a migrationprocess type, a database version of an end-user platform, and migrationsteps needed to perform a software migration for the migration processtype and the database version; and a second set of instructions,executable by the processor, configured to generate a one or moremigration scripts, wherein the one or more migration scripts comprisesthe selected program element(s).
 17. The non-transitorycomputer-readable medium of claim 16 wherein the metadata furtheridentifies a version of application software that is a target of thesoftware migration, and the version of the application softwarecomprises one of a base application version and a specialized version,wherein the base application version refers to a released version of theapplication software, and the specialized version refers to a verticalupgrade of the application software.
 18. The non-transitorycomputer-readable medium of claim 16 further comprising: a third set ofinstructions, executable by the processor, configured to organize theplurality of program elements in a logical order to perform the softwaremigration, wherein the metadata comprises information describing thelogical order to perform the software migration.
 19. The non-transitorycomputer-readable medium of claim 18 wherein the third set ofinstructions comprises: a fourth set of instructions, executable by theprocessor, configured to group one or more phase associated migrationsteps in a migration phase; and a fifth set of instructions, executableby the processor, configured to describe the migration phase in themetadata.
 20. A system comprising: a processor; and a memory coupled tothe processor and configured to store a plurality of program elements, afirst set of instructions, executable by the processor, configured toselect one or more selected program elements from the plurality ofprogram elements, wherein the first set of instructions are furtherconfigured to perform said selecting using metadata, the metadatadescribes the plurality of programming elements, the metadata and atleast some of the plurality of programming elements are stored in aconfiguration repository, and the metadata identifies a migrationprocess type, a database version of an end-user platform, and migrationsteps needed to perform a software migration for the migration processtype and the database version; and a second set of instructions,executable by the processor, configured to generate one or moremigration scripts, wherein the one or more migration scripts comprisesthe selected program element(s).
 21. The system of claim 20 wherein thememory is further configured to store a third set of instructions,executable by the processor, configured to organize the selected programelement(s) in a logical order to perform the software migration, whereinthe metadata comprises information describing the logical order toperform the software migration.
 22. The system of claim 21 wherein thethird set of instructions comprises: a fourth set of instructions,executable by the processor, configured to group one or more phaseassociated migration steps in a migration phase; and a fifth set ofinstructions, executable by the processor, configured to describe themigration phase in the metadata.